May 9, 2022

Title: CUT A RUG

Constructor: Kelsey Dixon

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

RUNNING GAG (18A: Repeated joke)

RUBE GOLDBERG (32A: Cartoonist associated with overly complicated machines)

RUIN THE ENDING (53A: Ignore a "no spoilers" request)

Theme synopsis: The word RUG is CUT by each theme answer.

And now a word from our constructor:

Kelsey: This theme came to me like a lightbulb moment, and I was so excited when I found some really fun fill to go with it—anyone who knows me knows there’s nothing I love more than a RUNNING GAG. In that same vein, I try to prioritize fun in all things, so opening with a flourish at 1A with [___cadabra] was just as important to me as the themers. Since this is my print debut, I wanted to really see myself in the puzzle— 45D, 52A, 2D, 55D (among others) are all things for which I have a lot of affection. I won’t 53A [Ignore a “no spoilers” request], but I hope people enjoy the solve as much as I enjoyed the build!

Things I learned:

• MIAMI SOL (38D: Former WNBA team that shared an arena with the Heat) The MIAMI SOL played in the WNBA for three seasons from 2000-2002. They were a sister team to NBA's MIAMI Heat. 

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• ERMA (10A: Singer Franklin) If you tried to make Aretha fit here, you were close. ERMA Franklin was Aretha's older sister. In addition to recording her own gospel records, ERMA sometimes sang backup vocals for her sister.
• MEAD (14A: Brew made from honey) and TEA (22A: Brew that might have honey added) This is a nice pair of clues with the repeated "honey" linking them together. I'm not sure I've ever had MEAD, which is sometimes called honey wine, but I am a fan of TEA with honey added.
• RUBE GOLDBERG (32A: Cartoonist associated with overly complicated machines) RUBE GOLDBERG (1883-1970) was a cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer, and inventor. He is most well known for his cartoons illustrating intricate and complicated machines performing simple tasks. His cartoons led to the coining of the term "RUBE GOLDBERG machines" to describe such inventions. There are many videos of RUBE GOLDBERG machines online. (I love them, and could watch them for hours!) Here's a video of a RUBE GOLDBERG machine consisting of 427 steps, that set a Guinness World Record in 2021 for the largest RUBE GOLDBERG machine.
• RUIN THE ENDING (53A: Ignore a "no spoilers" request) This is a fabulous theme answer, and a terrible thing to do to someone! When my daughter was reading Little Women for the first time, a friend of ours, upon learning she was reading it, said, "It was so sad when ___ died." I happen to be visiting my daughter at the moment, so I asked her if she remembered when this happened. She said, "I'll never forget it." Please don't RUIN THE ENDING!
• MING (63A: Chinese dynasty associated with vases) Among other things, the MING Dynasty (1368-1644) was notable as a time of innovation in ceramic manufacture. Blue and white porcelain is particularly associated with this era, though vases of other colors were also made.
• ZHAO (66A: "Nomadland director Chloe) I just wrote about the 2020 movie, Nomadland, yesterday. I apologize for not mentioning that Chloe ZHAO directed the movie. Had I known that information would come in handy for solving today's puzzle, I surely would have. Chloe ZHAO won numerous Best Director Awards - including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award - for Nomadland. 
• BEALE (2D: "If ___ Street Could Talk") If BEALE Street Could Talk is a 1974 novel by James Baldwin that was adapted into a 2018 movie of the same name. The title is a reference to a song, "BEALE Street Blues," named after a street in Memphis, Tennessee.
• RPG (26D: D&D or WoW genre) Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) and World of Warcraft (WoW) are both role playing games (RPGs).
• EBONY (30D: Magazine with a Power 100 list) The EBONY Power 100 List honors remarkable achievement of Black leaders in a variety of areas. The 2021 Power 100 List includes Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett as Innovator of the Year and Cori Bush and Nikole Hannah-Jones among Social Justice Champions.
• SLUGGO (45D: Nancy's best friend) Nancy and SLUGGO are characters in the long-running comic strip Nancy. The comic was originally drawn by Ernie Bushmiller when it launched in 1938, and has been drawn by a number of artists over the years. Since 2018, the comic strip has been drawn by Olivia Jaimes, who has updated it for a modern audience, including references to current trends and technologies. Nancy is an eight-year-old girl, and SLUGGO, as the clue informs us, is her best friend.
• TEAM (52A: Jaguars, Bengals, or Panthers) The Jacksonville Jaguars are an NFL TEAM, as are the Cincinnati Bengals and the Carolina Panthers.

  

  Toby keeping an eye on me

  It's fun that these teams all have cat names, which allows me to share a cat photo. My daughter's cat, Toby (who also made an appearance on the blog a few days ago as "baby Yoda") sat on the bathroom counter and closely monitored my morning routine this morning. 
• HONI (55D: Hagar's daughter) This is another comic strip reference. Hagar and his daughter, HONI, are characters in the comic, Hagar the Horrible, originally drawn by Did Browne, and currently drawn by his son, Chris Browne.

Geography review:

• TULSA (44A: Oklahoma city that was home to Black Wall Street) In the early twentieth century, the Greenwood District in TULSA, Oklahoma was home to many Black-owned businesses, earring it the nickname of Black Wall Street. In 1921, much of the neighborhood was destroyed by a white mob. If you are unfamiliar with this history, I encourage you to take a few minutes today to educate yourself about these events. 
• ASIA (62A: Cambodia's continent) Cambodia is a country in Southeast Asia. Cambodia's neighbors are Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam, and it has coastline on the Gulf of Thailand. The capital of Cambodia is Phnom Penh. 
• ERIE (9D: Ohio's Great Lake) In addition to bordering Ohio, Lake ERIE also borders Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, and the Canadian province of Ontario. One of my RUNNING GAGs, in a manner of speaking, is to keep you informed of ASIA and ERIE's frequent crossword appearances. We've seen back-to-back appearances of ASIA, as we saw it yesterday. The last time we saw ASIA and ERIE in the same puzzle was April 24. 

A classic USA Today crossword theme type today with three fabulous theme answers. I also enjoyed the entires BALLERINA, TANGY, and UH HUH. A couple of clues I especially liked that I haven't mentioned yet are ADOPTEE (4D: Superman, for one) and NATURE (19D: Word after "Mother" or "human"). Congratulations to Kelsey Dixon, who is making her USA Today crossword debut today with this lovely puzzle! Thanks, Kelsey, for this puzzle that was a great way to begin my Monday.